Second seed Marat Safin beat local hero John Hui 6-3, 6-2, in the first round of the 400,000-dollar Hong Kong Open today.
Safin, Russia's 21-year-old former US Open champion, had to fight to finish as the Hong Kong man saved three match points, increasing the drama as the 32-man event.
Due on court later were fourth-seeded American teenager Andy Roddick, like Safin another Hong Kong debutant, and three-time winner Michael Chang. Roddick was facing Brazilian Andre Sa while crowd favourite Chang was playing fellow American James Blake.
Safin said he was hoping to use the Hong Kong stage as a springboard to success and a possible place in the elite eight field for the season-ending Masters Cup in Sydney from November 12th.
"For a first-round match, my game was okay," said the notoriously hard-to-please Safin, who suffered through with injuries for the first two-thirds of the season. "I'm satisfied, since I've only been training here for three days.
"I have a big opportunity to get to the Masters (he is currently 11th in the standings) if I play well for the rest of the season - that means winning here if at all possible."
Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain, the top seed, only arrived in Hong Kong this afternoon after flying in from his country's Davis Cup date in Europe.
The tournament also marks the return to action of Australian Mark Philippoussis, who has not played since March with knee troubles and a recovery from surgery.
AFP